Bumblebee queens are better at olfactory learning and more sensitive to scents than workers

Intra-specific variation in cognition can reflect ecological demands, yet cognitive performance can be driven by non-cognitive processes. Bumblebees have been a long-standing model in the study of cognition for their aptitude at learning associations, but nearly all research has been limited to one life stage: foraging workers. Queen bumblebees also forage, and previous work shows that they learn visual associations with fewer errors than workers, offering a useful comparison of the drivers of variation in cognition. Here we tested whether queens’ better learning performance holds across another modality: olfaction, and whether performance could be driven by non-cognitive variables related to their larger size, including peripheral sensitivity. We first assessed olfactory learning in wild Bombus vosnesenskii and found that queens learned with fewer errors than workers. Following additional training and sensitivity tests, queens and workers did not differ, ruling out non-cognitive variab..., , # Data from: Bumblebee queens are better at olfactory learning and more sensitive to scents than workers

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.wdbrv1649](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.wdbrv1649)

## Description of the data and file structure

**Experiment 1 (field-based)** quantified olfactory learning and discrimination sensitivity in wild-caught *Bombus vosnesenskii* queens (n = 48) and workers (n = 44) tested immediately after collection at desert and montane meadow sites in Nevada and California during their respective foraging seasons (May–July 2024). Bees were captured while foraging and individually housed in ventilated plastic chambers under ambient field conditions. Using a modified Free-Moving Proboscis Extension Response (FMPER) protocol, each individual completed three sequential phases within a single testing session: (1) initial learning (5 training trials followed by 6 unrewarded probe trials at 1:100 scent dilution), (2) additional training to standardize learning (4 training tri..., ,